I don’t smoke. But sometimes I wish I did.

Smoking punctuates your day. A nicotine addiction makes you get up, go out, and then come back. When you return, it demands a new focus.

When you work at a desk it’s very easy to get sucked into the rathole of what you’re doing. From researching slightly-maybe-kind-of work related thing on Wikipedia, to spending hours redrawing a logo unnecessarily, there’s always something sucking away your time.

But not so much with the smokers I know. They waltz back from their cigarette break, clap their hands together and ask themselves what they should be doing right now.

They’d hate to hear it but they’re much more executive than the rest of us.

Smoking reminds me of the Pomodoro Technique. A clever little lifehack that suggests you slice up your day into a series of 20–25 minute bursts. It can be a useful way of ensuring you work on what matters most.